Tag: John Lewis

Enes Kanter posts a tribute to fallen civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis

Outspoken defender of human rights and Celtics center Enes Kanter posted a tribute to civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis Saturday.

Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter posted a tribute to Georgia Representative and civil rights legend John Lewis on Twitter Saturday after news of Lewis’ passing broke that morning.

Lewis, one of the leaders of the so-called “Big Six” groups who organized the 1963 March on Washington as chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), was a central figure of the civil rights movement of the 1960s.

Lewis would become a powerful member of the Democratic establishment, first winning office in the mid-1980s and winning reelection 16 times in a row as the representative of Georgia’s fifth congressional district in the House of Representative.

A staunch defender of human rights, it makes sense that the Celtics’ most-vocal player in that regard would honor the fallen fighter for the rights of others.

Kanter’s post featured a quote from Congressman John Lewis, which read:

“Freedom is not a state; it is an act. It is not some enchanted garden perched high on a distant plateau where we can finally sit down and rest. Freedom is the continuous action we all must take, and each generation must do its part to create an even more fair, more just society.”

Followed by Kanter’s own words, which read “R.I.P The Civil Rights Icon Rep. John Lewis. Your legacy will live on forever. The world is better because of you.”

Indeed.

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Chris Paul on loss of John Lewis and C.T. Vivian: ‘Today is a sad day’

Basketball was far from the only thing on the mind of Chris Paul on Saturday morning, as the nation suffered two tremendous losses.

Late Friday night, it was learned that we lost two Civil Rights Era icons: John Lewis and C.T. Vivian.

Upon learning the news, Chris Paul joined LeBron James in sending out tweets of condolence of the fallen heroes.

On Saturday morning, after the Thunder completed practice, Paul addressed reporters via video conference. Although he was asked quite a few questions about the team and their progression, he spent quite a bit of time talking about the losses of two of modern history’s biggest civil rights champions.

Mr. Lewis was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer in December and ultimately succumbed to complications from the disease while Mr. Vivian, according to CNN, died of natural causes. Mr. Lewis was 80 years old. Mr Vivian was 95.

From Faith Karimi of CNN.com:

Both men were the epitome of “good trouble” — Lewis’ favorite saying and approach to confronting injustices without violence. They worked alongside the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the forefront of the historic struggle for racial justices in the 1960s.

At the height of the push for justice, their beatings at the protests galvanized support that led to key changes. After years of arrests, confrontations and unyielding demands for justice, they received the highest civilian honor from the nation’s first Black President.

Obviously, none of this was lost on Paul, especially as some of the most powerful voices in the NBA fraternity have become increasingly outspoken about civil rights and social justice.

Paul addressed the losses of the two giants in a quote transcribed and provided on The Thunder’s Twitter feed.

“It’s about life, and who you are as a human being. Today is a sad day in that we lost two of the most powerful activists we’ve ever had – C.T. Vivian and John Lewis. The impact they had on America is unbelievable…

“And for me as a black man I think it’s more important for me to do my job better as a parent. A lot of times people look at us athletes as heroes, what we can do as far as dunking a basketball or throwing a touchdown, but the things that they did as human beings… John Lewis was one of the original 13 Freedom Riders, was the youngest speaker at the March on Washington, did the walk from Selma to Montgomery. And all of these things, I don’t think we do enough learning and teaching about…”

Paul’s sentiments represent the thoughts of many within the NBA fraternity, including James, Donovan Mitchell, Tobias Harris, two-time NBA Champion Pau Gasol and one of the greater players of all-time in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Without question, the impact of these losses will be felt for quite some time.

“Really sad day for our country,” …

“Really sad day for our country,” Rivers said before practice Saturday. “What is amazing is when you think of right now, some of the stuff that John Lewis was fighting for, we’re still fighting for. Voter suppression right now is at an all-time high. “It’s amazing how hard we have a group of people who are trying to get people not to vote. Latinos, Blacks and young people are the targets. That’s what they are trying to get not to vote. It’s amazing when you think about how long ago that was and yet we are still fighting that fight.”

Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said …

Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said the first time he met Lewis, he was so emotional shaking Lewis’ hand “because it was such an important life event for me.” “John Lewis’ stature in the Civil Rights Movement was gigantic and the example he set for people like myself will endure,” Abdul-Jabbar tweeted. “I’m glad that he got to see the efforts of his past 60 years of activism bear such precious fruit these last few months as people took to the streets, just as he had, to fight for a just and free America.”

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James …

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was one of the thousands of people to take to social media late Friday night and on Saturday morning to mourn the loss of a Civil Rights icon, Congressman John Lewis, who passed away late last night at the age of 80. Lewis served in the United States Congress since 1986 and he is most well known as one of the organizers of the march that led to ‘Bloody Sunday’ on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, on March 7, 1965, in which local and state police in Alabama brutally beat the protesters on the bridge. James honored Lewis on Twitter and has also been reposting tributes of others for John Lewis on his Instagram Story.

LeBron James mourns loss of Congressman, Civil Rights icon John Lewis

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was one of many who mourned the loss of Congressman John Lewis late on Friday night.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was one of the thousands of people to take to social media late Friday night and on Saturday morning to mourn the loss of a Civil Rights icon, Congressman John Lewis, who passed away late last night at the age of 80.

Lewis served in the United States Congress since 1986 and he is most well known as one of the organizers of the march that led to ‘Bloody Sunday’ on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, on March 7, 1965, in which local and state police in Alabama brutally beat the protesters on the bridge. James honored Lewis on Twitter and has also been reposting tributes of others for John Lewis on his Instagram Story.

Among one of LeBron’s many passions is history and his SpringHill Company has produced several pieces of content about the Civil Rights movement and the impact athletes at the time, such as Muhammad Ali, Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, had on those movements by using their increased stature.

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